identity by design

From delicate gold rush jewellery to a melting Bubble O’Bill sculpture, artists in Australia have reflected upon national identity in myriad ways throughout our recent history.

By Emma Busowsky - Curator, Bendigo Art Gallery and Australiana: Designing a Nation

Preceded by the long-standing artistic traditions of the First Peoples of Australia – the oldest continuing cultures in the world – newer Australians have looked to local materials and motifs in their creative expressions of place and identity.

Early Australian furniture-makers, for example, found that casuarina or she-oak was workable for this purpose, more so than eucalyptus. The Pembroke table, dated 1790s and in the National Gallery of Victoria’s collection, is an important example of this: it was made by a British cabinetmaker from what was reportedly the first specimen of wood taken from Kamay (Botany Bay) back to England.

Australiana: Designing a Nation is a major new exhibition that takes a look at what it means to be Australian through art and design, and identifies a distinct and continuing tradition for artists to explore notions of Australian identity, place and style.

Shearing the rams 1890 oil on canvas on composition board 122.4 × 183.3 cm

National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

Felton Bequest, 1932 (4654-3)

Photo: Predrag Cancar/NGV

ABOVE: Tony Albert

CLASH 2019 acrylic and found objects applied to plasticpolyester, powder-coated aluminium 120 x 550 cm

Image courtesy of sullivan + strumpf

Copyright Tony Albert/ Copyright Agency 2022

Sydney Sunday 1982 96 x 192 cm oil and acrylic on canvas

Collection of the artist

ABOVE: Kenny Pittock

Melted Bubble’O 2020 26cm x 25cm x 3.5cm synthetic polymer paint on ceramic

Spanning the visual and decorative arts as well as photography, illustration, furniture, jewellery, moving image and fashion, it comprises works by over 200 artists and designers.

The exhibition brings together beloved Australian masterpieces alongside lesser-known works to consider the visual language of Australiana over time, and the ways it celebrates – and interrogates – who we are.

Organised in partnership with the National Gallery of Victoria, the exhibition also offers a glimpse into the artworks and objects that the Governor General and the Prime Minister of Australia have on display in their residences, through special items borrowed from the Australiana Fund collection.

Australiana: Designing a Nation is a free exhibition that will run from March 18 to June 25, 2023, exclusively at Bendigo Art Gallery.

Music Livens Up Park

February was a month of live music in Bendigo, thanks to the Summer in the Parks program.

Those gathered in Strathdale’s Crook Street Park enjoyed a relaxing start to a weekend, lounging around on the grass with family and friends while enjoying the tunes of the talented Taylor Sheridan.

Modern And Environmentally Friendly Toilet Solutions

The award-winning Cinderella Incineration Toilets are world-class and are ideal for tiny houses, sheds, granny flats and leisure homes without access to water and sewage. The innovative water-free solution burns all toilet waste at high temperatures with the only outcome a coffee cup’s worth of ashes for a family of four during a week of use.

Cinderella is the natural first choice for those who place high demands on quality and functionality.

Students Make A Splash

The competition was fierce but fun at Girton Grammar School’s annual swimming carnival.

Hundreds of students proudly donned their house colours and cheered for their classmates as they took to the pool to vie for the coveted winner’s cup. Ultimately, Jenkin House took the prize, with Millward House awarded the Spirit Cup.

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Lisa Chesters MP - a strong VoiCe for Bendigo

federal Member for Bendigo

I am honoured to have been elected as the Federal Member for Bendigo. As your Federal Member of Parliament, my office and I can provide a wide range of services.

federal Member for Bendigo

federal Member for Bendigo

I am honoured to have been elected as the Federal Member for Bendigo. As your Federal Member of Parliament, my office and I can provide a wide range of services.

As your Federal Member of Parliament, my office and I can provide a wide range of services and support.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me anytime, either at my office on (03) 5443 9055 or by email at lisa.chesters.mp@aph.gov.au

I am honoured to have been elected as the Federal Member for Bendigo. As your Federal Member of Parliament, my office and I can provide a wide range of services.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me anytime, either at my office on (03) 5443 9055 or by email at lisa.chesters.mp@aph.gov.au

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me anytime, either at my office on (03) 5443 9055 or by email at lisa.chesters.mp@aph.gov.au

- AdvertIseMentwww.lisachesters.org

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me anytime, either at my office on (03) 5443 9055 or by email at lisa.chesters.mp@aph.gov.au www.lisachesters.org